Desmond and others have a nifty little saying “Rent eats first” that implies landlords get paid at the expense of people eating. The truth is food stamps (SNAP/Food Shares) are given to most people and families under the poverty level while housing assistance is given to very few. That’s why we read about evictions and homelessness and not about starvation. In a country as wealthy and great as America, we should not be hearing of either.

One workable voucher program could be similar to food stamps where all people and families below the poverty level, in addition to food stamps, would receive a housing allotment that can only be spent on housing.

The recipients would have a choice of renting from anyone without the government saying, for example, ‘you have two small kids so you are only eligible to rent a two bedroom in the $630 price range and we will pay $500 of that’ Instead the recipient would receive a $500 housing allotment. They then could rent a $500 place and pay nothing out of pocket or decide they want to rent a $750 three bedroom in a different neighborhood and must figure out how to pay the other $250 themselves.

Such a plan would help stabilize the private housing industry while at the same time would allow the recipients much more freedom of choice in their housing decisions. It would also be less costly to manage than Section 8. To achieve this the payments would have to be available to all rental owners except of course those banned due to fraud or similar.

Some of the money could come from adjusting the current W2. As the vouchers would earmark monies for housing the volume of evictions should subside.

Disclaimer

I am "just a landlord," NOT an attorney or accountant. If you need legal advice, tax advice or have appendicitis, don’t rely on something you read on the internet and do it yourself. Rather, hire a competent professional.